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These selected essays, a sampling of the writing in my  collection, explore difficult subjects. While the death of a child is always painful, suicide is its own kind of hell for those left behind. Sometimes, grief shared is made more bearable. If you are grieving the loss of a loved one to suicide or any other loss, I hope that these stories will help you  know that you are not alone with your grief. 

Love in the Archives

"...an achingly mournful essay about home, loss and the bonds of love. Eileen Collins is a writer who knows how to create mystery and intimacy through unforgettable, haunting details that reveal a family's deepest wound."

 — Chris Feliciano Arnold

                     Republished by Sante Fe Writer's Project Quarterly, Issue 20, Winter 2020 edition

Gold award icon with blue banner Diana Woods Memorial Award winner 2020

Hold on Till the Sun Goes Down

I bought cabinet locks and soft corners to stick on furniture, looked for sharp edges on toys, and gauged the safety of all loose things by the relative size of a small trachea.

Passengers Journal, Vol 2, Issue 8

Strong Enough to Withstand the Loss

We had a number of tiny cuttings in all sorts of containers. We marveled at the root hairs, fine and white as Grandma Dee’s tresses, seldom seen, hidden under her neatly styled wig.

Barren Magazine, Issue 20 

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